Matthew 1:1-8:13

Welcome to Day 1 of our 40 day Lenten journey through the New Testament. Our readings for today cover Jesus’ genealogy, His conception, His birth, His childhood, His baptism, His temptation, His first miracles, the calling of His first disciples, and His first sermons–30 years in 8 chapters!

I found my brain and my soul zeroing in on one particular part of the readings today–the account of the wise and foolish builders in Matthew 7: 24-27.

I was struck particularly by the fact that the wise and foolish builders have one thing in common with each other and one thing different from each other.

What they had in common was that they both hear the words of Jesus:

Vs 24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

vs. 26 “But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”

Both the wise and the foolish hear the words of Jesus. The difference is in the response to the words:

Vs 24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

vs. 26 “But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”

What Biblical truths does God show me in these verses?
The stability of our lives is deteremined by our response to the words of Jesus. If we hear them and put them into practice, we are wise and our lives, our spiritual houses, are built on solid rock that can withstand whatever trials life brings. But if we hear those words and ignore them or don’t put them into practice, we are foolish and subject to forces that can do us harm.

Since God tells us in the book of James to be doers of the Word and not merely hearers, how can I apply these Biblical truths to my life?
Today I will put Jesus’ words into practice. I will not read them and go about my day as business as usual. I will take the words of Jesus with me into my day and let them impact who who I am in Jesus.